Troubling study: It keeps getting worse for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders

Despite an increase of AANHPI activism and awareness campaigns about anti-Asian hate this past year, the situation seems to be getting worse for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.

A troubling new study says Americans are more likely to blame people of Asian descent than the previous year and a greater number are harboring distrust of their loyalties.

"This year's STAATUS Index is very alarming as it makes clear that attitudes toward Asian Americans are getting worse, not better at a time when our communities continue to come under attack," says Norman Chen, CEO of The Asian American Foundation and co-founder of nonprofit Leading Asian Americans to Unite for Change (LAAUNCH), which partnered together for the study.

VIEW the complete STAATUS Index at www.staatus-index.org.

"On the surface, we thought it was COVID and Trump. Deeper down we know it's related to the model minority myth and perpetual foreigner stereotypes. But even deeper, it really (shows) the embedded systemic racism in this country against Asian Americans," says Chen.

As Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Heritage Month gets underway this May, the survey reveals that nearly one third of Americans are unaware of anti-Asian violence despite a nearly 340% increase of attacks against Asian Americans in 2021 and one in five Americans believe Asian Americans are at least partly responsible for COVID-19.

The survey is based on a national sample of 5,113 U.S. residents, aged 18 and over, conducted online between February 10 and February 28, 2022. LAAUNCH and TAAF partnered on this year's STAATUS Index to illuminate harmful misperceptions of Asian Americans that are leading to the unprecedented rise in scapegoating and anti-AAPI violence.

"The survey found Asian Americans are more likely to be blamed for COVID-19 than we were in 2021, more likely to be questioned for our loyalty to the United States, and that we are among the least likely to feel that we belong in this country. These results reveal just how deeply embedded anti-Asian sentiment is in America right now, fueled by generations of systemic racism that has pervaded every aspect of our society and culture," says Chen.

Amazingly, the poll found that 58% of the respondents could not name a prominent Asian American. Vice President Kamala Harris, whose mother is Indian American, was outpolled by actor Jackie Chan, who is not even American, and martial arts icon Bruce Lee, who passed away in 49 years ago.

LAAUNCH and TAAF are working closely with leading AAPI scholars and research/data organizations, including AAPI Data and Stop AAPI Hate, to raise awareness about the Index's results and pursue actionable programming that tackles bias against Asian Americans. 

For example, TAAF's areas of focus include improving public education curricula so that AAPI history is better taught in schools, supporting more data and research on AAPI experiences, and promoting positive and diverse AAPI narratives in the media, film, and television—all efforts aimed at addressing the root causes of harmful anti-Asian attitudes.

"In 2022, 58% of Americans can't name a prominent Asian American and respondents most frequently identify Asian women and men in stereotypical roles like Kung Fu masters, criminals, geisha, sex workers and supporting roles. Prejudices continue to be reflected and perpetuated in film and media, which impacts how we view each other every day," said Eric Toda, Board Member, LAAUNCH and Advisory Council Member, TAAF. 

"However, 71% of Americans—especially our younger generations—want to see greater Asian American representation in TV and movies. While we have seen some progress with leading Asian actors in movies like Shang-Chi, Crazy Rich Asians, Everything Everywhere All at Once and popular series like Pachinko, we need to increase visibility of Asian Americans by considering how we are portraying Asian characters, writing multi-dimensional narratives, and casting Asian Americans into mainstream, leading roles."

Other key findings:

Despite a documented increase in attacks against Asian Americans, nearly one third of Americans are still unaware of the violence.

• 31% of respondents remain unaware of the increased violence towards Asian Americans.
• 71% of Asian American respondents say they are discriminated against in the U.S. today.
• Asian American respondents rank stronger laws and greater protection (#1) and education (#2) as the top solutions to end AAPI-Hate.Non-Asian American respondents rank education (#1) and more interaction with the AAPI community to better understand Asian American experiences (#2) as top solutions.
  

Americans are more likely to question the loyalty of Asian Americans and blame them for COVID-19 in 2022 than they were in 2021.

• One in five (21%) of respondents agree that Asian Americans are at least partly responsible for COVID-19. This is up from 15% in 2021.
• 32% of respondents agree Asian Americans are more loyal to their perceived country of origin than to the U.S., as compared to 20% in 2021.

Asian Americans are among the least likely to feel like they belong and are accepted in the U.S., especially younger Asian Americans.

• Only 29% of Asian American respondents (vs. 61% of white respondents and 33% of Black respondents) completely agree that they feel that they belong and are accepted in the U.S., the lowest of all racial groups.
• Asian American youth and women rate an even lower sense of belonging and acceptance in U.S. society—just 19% of Asian Americans between 18-24 and 66% of Asian American women compared to 75% of Asian American men.
  
• 72% of Asian Americans who are born outside of the U.S. feel that they belong and are accepted in the U.S., while only 67% of Asian Americans born in the U.S. feel the same

Asian Americans still go unseen despite Americans acknowledging their economic and cultural contributions to the U.S.Over 70% of respondents believe that Asian Americans have benefited the U.S.

• However, 58% of Americans are unable to name a prominent Asian American. Up from 42% in 2021. The most prominent Asian named was Jackie Chan, who is not Asian American.
• Majority of Americans cannot name an AAPI historical moment more recent than World War II Internment.
• When asked to identify the roles of Asian Americans in the entertainment industry:10% of respondents said they often see Asian women portrayed as sex workers
• 29% of respondents said they often see Asian American men as kung fu masters and criminals.
• Encouragingly, 71% of respondents said they would like to see more Asian Americans in TV and movies, with younger and very liberal respondents the keenest.

"Although this year's Index paints a more sobering picture of the status of Asian Americans than our inaugural survey last year, having an accurate and shared understanding of how Asian Americans are perceived is the only way any of us—advocates, policymakers, business leaders, and everyday Americans—will know what solutions need to be pursued," says Chen. 

"We clearly have a tremendous amount of work to do to ensure Asian Americans are fully—and finally—embraced in this country, but I am hopeful that the more we all understand the depth and breadth of these issues, the harder we will work to rectify them."

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